SOUTH BEND, Ind.— The team at The General Deli and Cafe on E. Jefferson Boulevard took the pandemic-related closure as an opportunity to give the nearly four-year-old restaurant a new look.

“We started with rearranging our espresso bar. We also exposed the brick wall, which meant taking down some sheetrock, pegboard and some plaster. We sanded down the floors, redid the floors, and rearranged the cabinetry,” said the cafe's managing partner Patrick Wittling.

The General Deli and Cafe reopened to dine-in customers on Thursday with safety protocols in place, including requiring that customers wear masks while inside the cafe.

“We have a sanitation station by the front door and a sanitation station by the cash register. We also have social distancing markers, we have reminders on the door about keeping social distance as well as wearing a mask,” Wittling said.

The cafe spent the first six weeks of quarantine open for take-out, curbside and free local delivery, all of which they will continue offering now that they’ve reopened.

Over the last two and a half weeks, the renovation the team has always wanted came to fruition, just in time for the cafe’s fourth birthday, which they will celebrate on July 4.

“We’re trying to get back to some normalcy. Certainly it’ll take time,” Wittling said. “We have spent a lot of time and effort and resources to give it a facelift but our sandwiches, our menu and our drinks are pretty much what we’ve been doing for almost four years now.”

The General Deli and Cafe, located at 609 E. Jefferson Boulevard, is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. during the pandemic. As restrictions are lifted, they will extend those hours.